As I was hitting YU for the first time in over a year on Saturday night, I was quite skeptical about the venue and what kind of vibe I could expect. I had previously been to YU for a range of different club nights, but had been turned off by one thing or another – cramped spaces, poor air conditioning and grumpy security. But this was my first time at the new Beware the Cat night that has taken over Saturday evenings, and as it was featuring both Yousef and Chris Dukenfield on the bill I was very keen to come back to check it out.

A pleasant change at YU was the friendly security and the increase in number of bar staff – such a change from when I was last there. We entered really quickly and walked straight up to the bar to throw back some vodkas, and I managed to catch the last part of John Devecchis’ impressive set. I’ve consistently heard positive things about this guy and he had a lot of people up and moving to his dynamic mixing – it made for the perfect warm up for Yousef!

When Yousef hit the decks, it was nothing less than electric. The music was a sensational mix of driving progressive house blended in with awesome sampling and funky acid-style tracks. What made it even better was the fact that the crowd wasn’t the same bunch of smashed gurners I remember from my previous experiences at YU. Everyone was dancing their little feet off with no collisions or drink spilling to be seen.

I managed to catch an hour of Chris Duckenfield’s set – who graciously came in to follow up what was apparently a killer performance at the Beck’s Festival Bar the very same night, before my feet gave in and made me carry them home. His set fit in perfectly with Yousef, making for an almost seamless changeover – I really wished I had been able to stick it out until the end. He played such a mix of tracks, and while I didn’t know many of them, they were all inspiring and the crowd was loving it.

Beware the Cat surprised and impressed me with what was a very fun night and, despite my preconceptions of YU before entering the venue, I had a great time and look forward to coming back. The music was refreshing and driving, the drinks flowed plentifully and the crowd was cool yet polite and friendly. If they keep the solid DJ lineups coming, I know I’ll be coming back for more.

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